ANNUAL REPORT, 1941 81 



Therefore, tests are conducted each year, particularly of the yellow varieties, 

 to observe earliness, yield, quality, disease resistance, and general adaptability 

 for this locality. Of the hybrids that have been tested for the past three years 

 four are especially noteworthy. 



Spancross (C4XC13) is an e.xtra early, very productive hybrid, and matures 

 in about 70 days. It has good quah'ty, is very uniform and has a medium-sized 

 ear measuring about 634 inches in length. This variety is two or three days earlier 

 than Golden Early Market. 



Marcross (C6XC13) has a large ear, about eight inches long and is an early- 

 maturing variety. It is only four or five days later than Spancross but not quite 

 so good in quality. 



Marcross (P39XC13) also known as Carmelcross Is a mid-season variety 

 which matures in 80 to 82 days. This variety' produces a large ear and has ex- 

 cellent quality and appearance. 



Golden Cross Bantam is a late market corn which matures in 85 to 89 days. It 

 produces a good crop of cylindrical, well-filled ears that are of exceptionally fine 

 quality. This variety is highly recommended. 



The Effects of Mulching Tomatoes and Peppers. (W. H. Lachman and G. B. 

 Snyder.) Each season soil moisture becomes one of the most limiting factors in 

 the production of vegetable crop plants. Any treatment or practice which will 

 aid in conserving soil moisture for plant use during critical periods becomes es- 

 pecialh- significant to the vegetable grower. 



Various mulches have been applied to the soil and compared with clean cultiva- 

 tion in the culture of tomatoes and peppers. Straw, banana fibre, and horse 

 manure were the materials used. Based on the results of the tests for two years,, 

 it is doubtful whether mulches have a significant influence on yield, cracking, or 

 quality of the fruit. 



If mulching was continued for several years it is conceivable that the increase 

 in organic matter might e.xert a mere marked influence on growth and production. 

 The applications of banana fiber changed the soil pH from 5.7 to 7.0, but this 

 change was not reflected in the growth of the plants. 



Samples of soil were taken from each of the plots and chemical analyses made 

 by Philip H. Smith of the Control Service. The results show that the various 

 treatments had a rather insignificant influence upon the mineral content of the 

 soil. The soil under the banana fiber mulch is considerably higher in potassium, 

 but other differences are cither lacking or not significant. 



Cucumber Seed Treatment. (O. C. Boyd and W. H. Lachman.) Samples 

 of pickling cucumber seed were obtained and treated to control seed-borne diseases 

 as well as diseases caused by soil-inhabitating organisms. Dusting the seeds with 

 red copper oxide, whether they had been previously soaked in mercuric chloride 

 solution or not, just doubled the stand of seedlings. The principal benefit of this 

 treatment was the prevention of seed decay and pre-emergence damping-off, 

 rather than the prevention of post-emergence damping-off. There was no evi- 

 dence of injury to germination by any of the treatments. 



Sources of Organic Matter for Greenhouse Tomatoes. (W. H. Lachman and 

 G. B. Snyder.) The scarcity of animal manures as a soil amendment has led to 

 a search for substitute materials. The main object was to find a cheap material 

 which would provide a good source of organic matter and support the growth of 

 greenhouse tomatoes. Straw and peat moss were the two materials best suited 

 for the problem. Straw has proved to be the better of the two materials and is 

 more economical. Both materials, however, must be supplemented with sufficient 

 commercial fertilizer to compensate for the nutrients supplied in manure. 



